These include law enforcement, fire and rescue, corrections and probation, and 911 dispatch across the United States, including the San Antonio Fire Department, the third-largest in Texas.
San Antonio Fire Department in-house Psychologist Melissa Graham is one of about 10 wellness staff who have helped to build and promote the CordicoFire app across the department. She has been with fire rescue for three years and served more than a decade with the city’s Police Department. The SAFD adopted the Cordico wellness solution in late 2020.
“It’s individualized to the San Antonio Fire Department. We’ve had a lot of downloads — it opens the door to help you realize that there are lots of resources,” Graham told Industry Insider — Texas. “We have 1,800 firefighters, and well over half have downloaded the CordicoFire app.”
The mobile solution provides mental health and wellness resources while allowing for anonymity, so first responders feel more comfortable when reaching out for assistance, be it mental health care, crisis care or health maintenance.
Cordico lists common health challenges as fatigue, sleep disorders and weight gain, but among the most serious are suicide ideation and post-traumatic disorders.
The solution includes:
- 24/7 availability and response.
- Complete anonymity for the end user.
- Generic link and password.
- Full customization with branding and other options to personalize.
- Emergency button for immediate connection to help.
- Self-assessments.
- Fitness and wellness modules and instruction.
- Department directory.
- Teletherapy and therapist finder.
The Fire Department has included staff photos in its directory, COVID-19 information, injury prevention links, guided meditations, sleep sounds, health information for firefighter-related cancers and a place to give feedback. There are many more features, Graham said. She said the self-assessments for conditions such as ADHD and depression are her favorite features.
The mobile application is now a regular part of the city budget.
In The Colony, a smaller but still growing city north of Dallas, the Police Department has recently adopted the solution and will launch next week.
“The Colony Police Department places a high level of value within officer wellness and resiliency,” Lt. Jason Stevens said via email. “Cordico was brought on board to add a tool to assist our officers’ mental and physical well-being,” he said. Stevens is a patrol watch commander and the department’s wellness coordinator and has been with the department eight years. He has 15 years in law enforcement.
The mobile application was completely customized by Lt. Stevens with assistance from Cordico, and it will include staff photos and other department information. The city’s IT department wasn’t needed for the out-of-the-box design.
“I believe that the most utilized feature of the app will be the officer wellness toolkit that offers a wide array of information related to multiple mental health topics such as critical incidents, family support, financial issues and PTSD,” he said. The members of the department “have shown an excitement for the release of the app and its support.”
Information about the contract and cost was not available at press time.
The Colony Police Department has about 129 employees, serving a city of 44,534 citizens, and is home to Grandscape, the shopping and entertainment district expected to attract 6 million to 8 million visitors per year.
In San Antonio, Graham uses marketing materials that come with the wellness solution. Fliers with QR codes are placed across the city, and information cards are handed out at in-house training sessions.
Since COVID-19 opened up more conversation about mental health, she said, online access to these services is expected to grow and continue.
According to Deloitte Insights, the mental health mobile app market grew 32 percent in the first 10 months of 2019 and during the same period in 2020. These apps continue to see large adoption; however, most are aimed at a global public. Cordico has tailored its products to a first responder marketplace.
Lexipol, which purchased Cordico in December 2020, is based in Frisco. The company “serves more than 2 million first responders and local government officials with policies, wellness resources, training, grant assistance and news and analysis,” according to its literature. Cordico was founded by David Black, Ph.D., in 2014 in California, and he continues to lead the business.
“First responders face enormous stressors and pressures on the job while responding continually to the highest risk events in their communities. This chronic exposure to stress and trauma is associated with numerous physical and mental health risks,” he has said.
Both The Colony Police Department and San Antonio Fire Department will continue to support mental health and wellness for their ranks. Some hiring initiatives, such as additional wellness staff, were postponed due to the pandemic response, Graham said. The Colony is bringing three chaplains on board, Stevens said.
